A man in the UK has become the world's first patient to have 3D-printed eyes fitted. Moorfields Eye Hospital in London, England, treated Steve Verze, 47, and performed surgery on his left eye.
These 3D-printed eyes are more realistic than other alternatives, and are designed to have clearer definition and truer depth to the pupil.
Quoted from 9News, another prosthetic eye consists of a hand-painted iris on a disc which is then inserted into the eye socket. The hospital claims their eye design prevents light from entering the "full depth" eye.
Besides looking more realistic, this procedure is considered non-invasive.
Traditional prosthetic insertion requires an impression of the eye socket, whereas in the development of a 3D prosthetic eye, the socket is digitally scanned to create a detailed image. Verze's functional eyes were also scanned to make sure both eyes looked the same.
The 3D images are then sent to Germany for printing before being sent back to the UK where they will be polished by ophthalmologists at Moorfields Eye Hospital.
"I've needed a prosthetic since I was 20, and I've always felt self-conscious about it. When I leave my house, I often look in the mirror a second time, and I don't like what I see. But these new eyes look amazing. And because it's based on 3D digital printing technology, the future of prosthetic eyes will be even better," said Verze.
Moorfields Eye Hospital said 3D printing could potentially cut the time it takes to develop a prosthetic eye, from six weeks to about two or three weeks.
A spokesman for the hospital said clinical trials involving more patients would begin soon. Professor Mandeep Sagoo, clinical lead for the project at Moorfields Eye Hospital and professor of ophthalmology and ophthalmology at University College London said he was excited to explore the potential of this new development method.
"We hope that upcoming clinical trials will provide us with strong evidence of the value of this new technology, showing what a difference it makes for patients."
